Cape Town - Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes Francis Coquelin could miss as little as three weeks after it was revealed the midfielder's knee injury is not as bad as first feared.
The Gunners boss had feared that the injury would be similar to the one the Frenchman suffered last season that saw him miss two months of action.
Wenger is confident that Coquelin will be on the sidelines for a shorter period this time around despite him leaving the Emirates in a knee brace after being forced off in the first half of Arsenal's 3-0 win over Chelsea at the weekend.
"Coquelin is out for the game tomorrow," Wenger said at a press conference ahead of Wednesday's Champions League clash with FC Basel.
"It should be a short-term injury. The scan was quite positive."
Coquelin's injury will present new boy Granit Xhaka with an opportunity to cement his place in the Arsenal starting line-up after his big money move to north London from Borussia Mönchengladbach this summer.